Stebic family suit: CBS reporting 'reckless'

September 27, 2008

Craig Stebic's family filed a lawsuit against CBS and several of Channel 2's employees, claiming their coverage of the relationship between Craig Stebic and former NBC reporter Amy Jacobson was false, malicious and illegal.

Craig Stebic's sister, Jill Webb, and her husband, Robert Webb, want more than $40,000 in damages claiming "severe emotional distress" from the media attention surrounding Jacobson's visit with the family in July 2007.

Jacobson was assigned to cover Lisa Stebic's disappearance. WBBM aired video of Jacobson wearing a halter bikini top and towel near the pool at Craig Stebic's home. Jacobson lost her job with WMAQ-TV following the incident.

Jacobson filed a similar lawsuit in July, saying WBBM had portrayed her "as an adulteress and disreputable reporter." The station issued a statement at that time saying it stood by its reporting.

Channel 2 spokeswoman Elizabeth Abrams said Saturday the station has yet to review the new lawsuit but "looks forward to vigorously defending ourselves in court."

Lisa Stebic remains missing. Stebic has been named a "person of interest" by police in the disappearance of his wife but hasn't been charged with any crime.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the suit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court on Friday, claims that CBS Broadcasting, Inc. and its employees, Joseph Ahern, Carol Fowler, Mike Puccinelli, Rob Johnson, Michele Weldon and Alita Guillen were reckless in reporting the Jacobson incident, which has allegedly alienated and damaged their family.